In loving memory of Franklin Casuga
Donation protected
Hi everyone, my name is Abigail Casuga. I am my dad’s youngest daughter. I’m fundraising for my father and his funeral service along with other expenses we need in terms of paying for tremendous hospital bills. I want to make my father proud, and I wanted him to see me accomplish a lot of more things I wish he could’ve seen when he was alive. But I know he’ll be proud of me up there. Please give my family and I a listen.
My dad was a very sweet but strong headed person. He was born in San Fernando la union in the Philippines. He received his bachelor’s degree in the Philippines as well as his associates degree in the US at Truman college. He moved with our mom to America in the early 90’s and ended up having 3 children. Gerard, Melanie, and Abigail. He loved listening to the Beatles and Banda music from Latin culture. You could also see my dad playing games on his phone and scrolling through Facebook listening to news in Tagalog. He loved trying new food and traveling. My dad knew how to play the piano very well and played the entertainer by Scott Joplin and taught my sister and I how to play the chopsticks. He also very much loved his job. My dad worked at Fiserv since before I was born till he was laid off in 2019. He did a lot of data entry and always took his favorite lunchbox to work everyday. When I was a kid, he let me pick out his clothes and cologne for the day at work and always managed to spray some cologne on me and give me a kiss on the cheek before he left to work. Taking pictures was also my dad’s favorite thing, considering the picture albums in our home and his sister’s home as well. He always had a dog smile on which I have always copied as I'm his little twin. My dad took me on the cta all the time around the city as a child after school when I was only 4 and would go to my school events growing up and would beg him to come be a chaperone at my field trips. My dad lost his job in 2019 and after quarantine he started to go through depression. Our father struggled silently as it is not a norm in American and also Asian culture for men to express their feelings towards mental health. We did not know how much he struggled and everyday we regret that we could’ve done everything we could to make his life happier before he passed. Through time his diabetes and mental health complications got worse.
It was in May 2023 that my father was hospitalized for diabetes complications on the day of my graduation at Harold Washington college. My dad had a sudden cardiac arrest that had sent him to the icu for a few weeks and then to kindred hospital for another few weeks and spent the rest of his life in a nursing home named elevate north. He also went to the hospital back to back due to sepsis and 3 more cardiac arrests leading to his blood pressure to drop causing him to pass. This has lead us to struggle with multiple medical bills that it is hard to afford with my mom, aunt, and siblings working part/full time jobs. We are also struggling with living expenses and trying to afford going through college at UIC and Truman college this semester even after scholarships and aid. It was also unfortunate for us to lose our father’s credit/debit cards due to the negligence of the Logan square pavilion staff that had lost our father’s personal belongings which would’ve helped us greatly with these expenses. It would be difficult for us to raise money on our own so any donations would be appreciated. We would also like to fund for his funeral and wake services as well as we would want him to have a proper burial and visitation. Thank you so much for listening and we hope that you’ll be able to help us. Even a little bit goes a long way. Thank you so much.
Also, please tell your loved ones you love them and please please check on them when you can. Mental health is real and if you think your loved ones don’t love you, I promise you so so much that they do. If you or someone is struggling with mental health you are not alone and you are not weak. I promise you can trust someone out there who will be willing to listen and lend you a hand without judgement. I love you all. Thank you so much.
My dad was a very sweet but strong headed person. He was born in San Fernando la union in the Philippines. He received his bachelor’s degree in the Philippines as well as his associates degree in the US at Truman college. He moved with our mom to America in the early 90’s and ended up having 3 children. Gerard, Melanie, and Abigail. He loved listening to the Beatles and Banda music from Latin culture. You could also see my dad playing games on his phone and scrolling through Facebook listening to news in Tagalog. He loved trying new food and traveling. My dad knew how to play the piano very well and played the entertainer by Scott Joplin and taught my sister and I how to play the chopsticks. He also very much loved his job. My dad worked at Fiserv since before I was born till he was laid off in 2019. He did a lot of data entry and always took his favorite lunchbox to work everyday. When I was a kid, he let me pick out his clothes and cologne for the day at work and always managed to spray some cologne on me and give me a kiss on the cheek before he left to work. Taking pictures was also my dad’s favorite thing, considering the picture albums in our home and his sister’s home as well. He always had a dog smile on which I have always copied as I'm his little twin. My dad took me on the cta all the time around the city as a child after school when I was only 4 and would go to my school events growing up and would beg him to come be a chaperone at my field trips. My dad lost his job in 2019 and after quarantine he started to go through depression. Our father struggled silently as it is not a norm in American and also Asian culture for men to express their feelings towards mental health. We did not know how much he struggled and everyday we regret that we could’ve done everything we could to make his life happier before he passed. Through time his diabetes and mental health complications got worse.
It was in May 2023 that my father was hospitalized for diabetes complications on the day of my graduation at Harold Washington college. My dad had a sudden cardiac arrest that had sent him to the icu for a few weeks and then to kindred hospital for another few weeks and spent the rest of his life in a nursing home named elevate north. He also went to the hospital back to back due to sepsis and 3 more cardiac arrests leading to his blood pressure to drop causing him to pass. This has lead us to struggle with multiple medical bills that it is hard to afford with my mom, aunt, and siblings working part/full time jobs. We are also struggling with living expenses and trying to afford going through college at UIC and Truman college this semester even after scholarships and aid. It was also unfortunate for us to lose our father’s credit/debit cards due to the negligence of the Logan square pavilion staff that had lost our father’s personal belongings which would’ve helped us greatly with these expenses. It would be difficult for us to raise money on our own so any donations would be appreciated. We would also like to fund for his funeral and wake services as well as we would want him to have a proper burial and visitation. Thank you so much for listening and we hope that you’ll be able to help us. Even a little bit goes a long way. Thank you so much.
Also, please tell your loved ones you love them and please please check on them when you can. Mental health is real and if you think your loved ones don’t love you, I promise you so so much that they do. If you or someone is struggling with mental health you are not alone and you are not weak. I promise you can trust someone out there who will be willing to listen and lend you a hand without judgement. I love you all. Thank you so much.
Fundraising team: Team fundraiser (2)
Abigail Casuga
Organizer
Chicago, IL
Melanie Casuga
Team member